Recycle with River Oak and Colgate

We all know recycling has changed our world for the better, and now a partnership with River Oak Dental and Colgate is making it easier to keep oral health packaging out of landfills.

Most local recycling programs do not accept dental hygiene products like toothbrushes. And you shouldn’t throw toothpaste tubes in the recycling bin either. In fact, oral health products are some of the trickiest items to recycle because they are often comprised of multiple materials.

It’s a fact, a new toothbrush is 95% more effective than one that is three months old. A worn toothbrush is less effective at removing plaque between teeth, that’s why it’s recommended to replace your toothbrush every 3 months. Overtime, that’s a lot of waste ending up in a landfill

Now you can bring used products and packaging to River Oak and we will mail the items to Colgate and the TerraCycle program. It’s part of a nationwide initiative to keep these items out of landfills for good.

You don’t need an appointment – just come by, say hi, and drop off your items. We’ll take care of the rest, and you’ll leave feeling pretty good about your efforts to help the environment.

Colgate® Oral Care Recycling Program accepted waste includes:

Toothpaste tubes and caps

Toothbrushes

Toothbrush and toothpaste tube outer packaging

Empty mouthwash containers

Empty floss containers

It’s important to note, electric toothbrushes, battery toothbrushes, and/or their parts are not recyclable through the program.

Once collected, the tubes and brushes are separated by composition, shredded and melted into hard plastic that can be remolded to make new recycled products.

Items don’t have to be completely cleaned out – just make sure all excess product has been removed (i.e. leftover toothpaste or floss). If you choose to rinse your product, it must be completely dry prior to shipping. We cannot accept dripping packages (it’s not accepted by Colgate, and wet products are just messy.)

River Oak is committed to making the world a better place, one smile at a time, and now it’s exciting to partner with our patients to make our environment healthier too – please join us in this effort.

Next time you’re in our area please drop in and drop off your used oral health items. We’ll see you soon!